Burial vault



y July 14, 1942. J, R vKlRBy ,uRnnvAuL'r Filed April 22, 1940 TTORNEY INVENTOR James /f/r Patented July 14, 1942 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE BURIAL VAULT James R. Kirby, Independence, Mo. Application April 22, 1940, Serial No. l331,000

1 Claim.

This invention relates to burial vaults and a method of making same, the principal objects of the present invention Vbeing to provide a convenient, relatively economical and highly efflcient burial vault. When burial vaults and/or mausoleums, particularly those having laminated walls, are 4in use, with bodies therein, .theV bodies are subject to rapid `disintegration and the vaults are subjected to separation or slumping of the laminations because of the effects of moisture, frost and temperature changes.

Another object of this invention is, therefore, to so form burial vaults as to effectively combat such deteriorating and separating influences in the Vault and the bodies contained therein;

Other objects of the invention are to provide burial vaults with uniformly smooth inner surfaces for enhancing the appearance of the vaults; to form portions of the vaults in sections for facilitating the manufacture and assembly thereof to provide for insulating the vaults so that a more constant temperature may be maintained in the vault than has heretofore been possible; to provide for forming a good bond between the materials or laminations going into the vault structure; to provide for eilicieritly sealing the vault parts; to strengthen the vault internally thereof; and to provide improved elements and arrangements thereof, together with improved method steps and sequences thereof in a burial vault and method of making same of the vcharacter noted.

In accomplishing these and other objects of the present invention, I have provided improved method steps and details of structure, the preferred form of structure being illustrated in the accompanying drawing, wherein:

Fig. 1 is a detail perspective View of a burial vault embodying the present invention, the vault also being shown in vertical transverse section.

Fig. 2 is a detail vertical cross-section through a portion of the vault, showing a cover sealed thereto.

Fig. 3 is a detail perspective view, partly in vertical section, of a form for producing a part of the wall sections of the vault.

Fig. 4 is a detail perspective View of a part of a wall section illustrating the relation between the insulating and bonding portions thereof.

Fig. 5 is a detail perspective view, partly in vertical sections, of a form for applying material to the wall portion illustrated in Fig. 4 to complete the wall sections of the vault.

Fig. 6 is a detail horizontal section, substantially on the line 6 6, Fig. 5, showing the rela- H5 I designates a burial vault embodying the features of the present invention which preferably consists of an inner layer 2 of asphalt or the like, an intermediate insulating layer V3 preferably of an asphaltic insulation material, for example, of

l0 the character of roong shingles, paper, board or thelike capable of adhering to the asphalt, and having sufficient body or stiffness to be relatively self-supporting. The layer 3 may be provided with abondingv element or device II of sand or the like whichy is customarily applied to roofing shingles to aid in bonding a `layer 5 of concreteor the like covering the other layers and forming the body of the vault.

In forming the walls of the vault, it has been found that itis very difficult to apply the asphalt to concrete or other wall material after the wall is formed because water or moisture seeping through the concrete breaks the bond and separates the asphalt from the concrete, thus allowing the .asphalt lamination .to slump. It is also difficult to .make a `smooth coat of asphalt on the inner vault wall. I, therefore, prefer to cast the asphalt and insulating material in a mold to form a section of the vault walls and allow the asphalt to harden so that the surface of the asphalt will be smooth and the combined asphalt and insulation may be 'entirely self-supporting and cannot slump. The inner and intermediate laminations are preferably molded by applying fthe insulating layer 3, with the bonding device'4 facing downwardlyl to the bed 6 of a mold form 1, Fig. 2, the form having side and end walls 8 and 9 for confining the edges of the layer 3. Asphalt may then be melted and poured onto the 40 layer 3 in the form to make a layer or lining 2 which adheres to the insulating layer.

When the asphalt has set and forms a hard 4smooth surface, layers 2--3-4, of suitable size and shape, may be applied to form boards I0, I I,

I2 and I3, Fig. 5, as by nails I4 or the like, the

form boards being arranged to form an inverted box, as shown. It will be noted that the nails I4 are preferably extended only a yshort distance into the bo'ards I0 to I3 which is for the reason that when the boards are removed the ends of the nails may be smoothed olf readily.

The boards I0 to I3, with layers 2-3--4 attached, may then be applied to the bed I5 of a form I6 in spaced relation to the inner faces of the' ends and sides li and ls thereof. As so arranged, a torch or the like, not shown, may be applied to the corners of the layers to form a seal or weld I9 therebetween for sealing the inner layers or linings.

The inner faces I'I and I8 of the ends and sides of the form bed I preferably diverge upwardly and outwardly, Fig. 5, and the top faces thereof are of sufficient width to form shoulders 2i between the said inner faces and outer faces 22 of the form board ends and sides when form boards 23 and 24, Fig. 6, are applied to the bed I5 with the outer faces thereof coincidentally arranged relative to the outer side and end faces of the bed I5.

The noted arrangement provides spaces between the form boards and the layers, forming the side walls of the vault, of such a character that the concrete 5 may be poured into such spaces for forming the side walls 25 and 25,

Vand end walls 21, Fig. l, of the vault.

the vault, it also being apparent that the nails( I4 project laterally into the concrete for further reinforcing the vault.

The shoulder 2| of the form bed, Fig. 5, forms the shoulder 3l, Fig. l, of the vault and the space between the form faces I'l and the vault side Wall forming layers 2--3-4, Fig. 5, form a peripheral flange 32, Fig. l, for the vault.

The cover 33, Fig. 1, may be formed in a manner somewhat similar to the vault proper above described. A suitable form, not shown, is provided to mold the cover, the insulating layer or lining 34 being preferably rst applied to the form with the bonding device 35 facing downwardly, after which a layer of asphalt 35 or the like may be applied to the lining 34. When the asphalt has set the layer so formed is inverted and another form is provided. The lining 34 is extended, as shown in Fig. 2, to form the inner surface of a lip 31 and a groove 38, the lining terminating short of the proposed thickness of the outer side surfaces of the cover approximately at a point corresponding to the inner edge of the shoulder 3I on the vault. Nails 39 or the like may be employed to hold the asphalt and insulating lining on the form and I8 andfYV are embedded in concrete 4i] or the like which is applied to the form in superimposed relation to the asphalt 36 and insulating lining 34--35. The concrete is shaped to a suitable configuration in a suitable manner.

In applying the cover to the vault, a plastic sealing material 4I is applied to the upper edges of the vault, inclusive of the shoulder 3| and JAlange 32, the plastic material being of sufficient quantity to depend into the interior of the vault a distance approximating the length of the lip 31 on the cover. The cover is then placed on the plastic material which seals the cover in place.

Some of the advantages of the present invention are that by molding the vault in sections, greater and faster production at less cost may be accomplished; a good bond is provided between the concrete and insulating linings which prevents slumping of the asphalt inner lining and regardless of the seepage through the concrete maintains the walls in shape and the interior of the vault dry; the lateral reinforcements aid in preserving the vault; a smooth interior is provided for the vault; a substantially constant temperature is maintained in the Vault which retards deterioration of bodies in the vault as well as the vault itself; and a vault of attractive appearance is provided that is convenient in assembly and operation and is highly efficient for its intended purpose.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

A grave vault of the character described including, a body member and a cover member having tongue and grooved edges respectively, each member comprising an inner open top box of asphaltic material and formed of a series of wall and bottom sections Welded at the corners, an outer box formed of monolithic concrete surrounding the inner box, intermediate laminations between the walls and bottoms of the inner and outer boxes adapted to effect a bond between' said walls of said boxes, the inner lamination of the cover member extending throughout the lines of Contact of the groove in the cover wall with the tongue on the body member wall, and sealing means of plastic asphalt material interposed between the intermediate lamination in the groove of the cover member and the tongue on the edge of the vault body member for sealing the same in engagement with each other.

JAMES R. KIRBY. 

